Equine Dentist Gags

[sundance]

I have a horse who has a chip/ridge on one of his back teeth. Of course feed/grass gets stuck in this and has given him a sinus infection. He is retired and sees the dentist every 12 months and this has just come to light. Ideally I would like to be able to remove the feed/grass myself without getting my hand chewed off. Does anyone know if it is possible to buy an equine dentist gag without being a dentist and if so where from?

 

[paulineh]

You can buy them on line but they are not cheap http://www.equinebladesdirect.com/product.aspx?subcatid=18

Have you tried syringing the mouth out after every feed. The dose Syringes are much cheaper.

Most horses will get use to the hose into their mouths which is a good way of cleaning the mouth. I use a 50 ml bladder syringe and a weak solution of listerine mouth wash.

 

[sundance]

Thanks for this, just might go with your suggestion before spending that amount!! Would probably be cheaper to get the dentist out every month at that price

 

[Aru]

Gags are very expensive!

If you catch the tongue and hold it gently out to one side of the mouth you can check teeth the opposite side without the same danger of being chomped...then use a 50 ml syringe or better yet a dosing gun like they use on cattle or sheep(holds more water 200 plus mls) to flush the gaps.

 

[saturdaygirl]

If you don't manage to get the bits out with a 50ml dosing syringe you could try one of these http://www.equine-professional.com/...thing-else/large-400ml-drenching-syringe.html like dentists use. You can get the metal part right back to where you want it

 

[cm2581]

Horses can still still completely close and chew with their tongue held out! My finger can vouch for that and OMG what a bloody (literally) mess it was! I was very lucky and got a gag on ebay for £250. Without that I was looking at minimally £150 a month plus transporting to the vets for them to do it. My vet said the type I managed to get would usually be £800+ so I was very lucky. Please do be aware that horses with gags on are very very dangerous. One swipe to your head by a gagged horse could very easily be lights out for you, permanently. So please wear a hat and if your horse is at all fractious dont use it. Thankfully my old girl really seemed to appreciate what I was doing for her!

The hosepipe works quite well. I found it best to put the pipe in and then turn it on. Corsodyl alcohol free mouth wash is very good also. I used it for a final rinse after the areas were clear.